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Short Story writers

Mslexia Fiction & Memoir Competition 2020

Information

Closing date: 
21 September 2020
Entry: 
Open to women writers only from across the world with unpublished manuscripts (self-published work allowed) Entry fees - various
Prize: 
Various


Short Story

For complete short stories in any genre for adult /young adult women writers.
First Prize 3,000 plus optional week at an Arvon writing centre
Entry fee 310

Flash Fiction

Fr complete short fiction narratives in any genre for adults and/or young adult readers
First Prize £500
Entry fee £5

Children's & YA novel  Read more

2020 Manchester Writing Competition

Information

Closing date: 
18 September 2020
Entry: 
Open to writers across the world. Entry fee £18
Prize: 
Two £10,000 prizes are awarded: the Manchester Poetry Prize for best portfolio of poems and the Manchester Fiction Prize for best short story

The Manchester Writing Competition offers the UK's biggest literary awards for unpublished work, offered by the country's most successful writing school. The Competition was established in 2008 by Carol Ann Duffy (UK Poet Laureate 2009-19) and has awarded more than £195,000 to writers.  Read more

The Bridport Prize 2020

Information

Closing date: 
31 May 2020
Entry: 
Eligibility and entry fee Poetry, Short Story and Flash Fiction open to unpublished work from any writer writing in English over 16. Novel Award restricted to UK writers. Entry fee: £10 per poem, £12 per story, £9 for flash fiction and £20 per novel
Prize: 
Poetry and Short Story 1st Prize £5,000, 2nd Prize £1,000, 3rd Prize £500. Flash Fiction 1st Prize £1,000, 2nd Prize £500 and 3rd Prize £250. Novel Award 1st Prize £1500, 2nd Prize £750 and 3 awards of £150.

The Bridport Prize has four sections: Poetry, Short Story, Flash Fiction and Novel Award.

Read the Rules carefully, as they have different prizes, rules and entry fees.

More details

 

Anthology Magazine Short Story Competition

Information

Closing date: 
31 July 2020
Entry: 
Unpublished short stories - open to all. Entry fee Early Bird: 31 May 2020 – €10 per story, Final Deadline: 31 July 2020 – €15 per story
Prize: 
A €300 cash prize and the chance to see their work published in a future issue of Anthology Magazine

Writers of short fiction are invited to enter the Anthology Magazine Short Story Competition. Established to recognise and encourage creative writing and provide a platform for publication, it is open to original and previously unpublished short stories in the English language by a writer of any nationality, living anywhere in the world.  Read more

Aesthetica Creative Writing Award 2020

Information

Closing date: 
31 August 2020
Entry: 
Open to all. Entry fee Poetry entries £12 | Short Fiction entries £18 but offer if enter by 10 May
Prize: 
£1,000 awarded to both the Poetry and Short Fiction winners, and publication in the Aesthetica Creative Writing Anthology, which is awarded to 60 writers, shortlisted by the judging panel.

The Aesthetica Creative Writing Award is an international literary prize that is a hotbed for new talent in Poetry and Short Fiction. Now in its 14th year, the Prize supports both emerging and established writers. By entering, writers can showcase their work to key industry figures and organisations including The Poetry SocietyLively and well-presented UK site supporting poetry with 4,000 members internationally and some thoughtful content. www.poetrysociety.org.uk, Granta, VINTAGE and more.  Read more

The Moth Short Story Prize 2020

Information

Closing date: 
30 June 2020
Entry: 
Open to all writers over 16. Entry fee €15 per story
Prize: 
1st prize €3,000, 2nd prize week-long writing retreat at Circle of Misse in France plus €250 travel stipend, 3rd prize €1,000

The Moth Short Story Prize is an important date on the literary calendar. Every year, a single judge is asked to choose three winning stories to feature in the autumn issue of The Moth.

This year's judge is Mark Haddon, author of the worldwide bestseller, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time, which won seventeen literary prizes and is now an acclaimed stage play.  Read more

The Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award 2020

Information

Closing date: 
13 December 2019
Entry: 
Open to any novelist or short story writer from around the world who has been published in the UK or Ireland. No entry fee
Prize: 
First Prize £30,000, shortlisted authors get £1,000

Promoting & celebrating the excellence of the modern short story

The Sunday Times Audible Short Story Award is the richest prize for a single short story in the English language, worth £30,000 to the winner. The award, for a story of 6,000 words or less, is open to any novelist or short story writer from around the world who has been published in the UK or Ireland.  Read more

Nobrow Short Story Competition

Information

Closing date: 
9 December 2019
Entry: 
Open to all writers of 18 and over with an unpublished and not yet submitted story or creative non-fiction piece. No entry fee
Prize: 
The overall winner will receive £2000, all selected contributors will receive £150 and two complimentary copies of the book

Nobrow Short Story Competition for writers! Up to twelve winning entries will be published in our short story anthology, and this beautifully illustrated book will celebrate the best short fiction and non-fiction writing.  Read more

Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2020

Information

Closing date: 
1 November 2019
Entry: 
Open to Commonwealth writers for unpublished stories in 11 languages No entry fee
Prize: 
Overall winner £5,000, five regional winners £2,500

Entrants can submit in 11 languages and the prize is awarded for the best piece of unpublished short fiction (2,000-5,000 words). The five regional winners each receive £2,500 and the overall winner receives a total of £5,000.

Entries must be 2,000 words minimum, 5,000 words maximum.  Read more

The Caterpillar Story Prize 2019

Information

Closing date: 
30 September 2019
Entry: 
Open to all writers over 16 Entry fee €12
Prize: 
First Prize €1,000, Second Prize a week’s retreat at the marvellous Tyrone Guthrie Centre in Co. Monaghan, Ireland.

This annual award is given to the best story (of no more than 1,500 words) written by an adult for children aged 7-11.
Anyone can enter, as long as you are over 16 and your story is previously unpublished.


THE JUDGE

We are delighted to announce that Kelly McCaughrain will judge The Caterpillar Story Prize 2019.

HOW TO ENTER  Read more

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4 January 2021 - What's new

January 2021
  • ‘The thing I like about novels is that they are a more forgiving form. You can make missteps. It's harder to write a really good short story - I'm more aware of the flaws in my short stories.
  Read more

The 2021 International Book and Pamphlet Competition

Information

Closing date: 
1 March 2021
Entry: 
Open internationally. Entry fee £28, £25 to subscribers to The North
Prize: 
Publication by Smith|Doorstop Books; a share of £2,000 cash; a launch reading; publication in the North magazine; book vouchers from Inpress Books

The 2021 International Book & Pamphlet Competition is now open for entries

Judged by Daljit Nagra & Pascale Petit

DEADLINE: last post on Monday 1st March 2021, or midnight on Monday 1st March 2021 for online entrants.

ENTRY FEE: £28, or £25 for North subscribers, Friends of the Poetry Business and members of the Poetry Society.  Read more

'People have many cruel expectations from writers. People expect novelists to live on a hill with three kids and a spouse, people expect children's story writers to never have sex, and people expect all great poets to be dead. And these are all very difficult expectations to fulfill, I think.'

— C. JoyBell C.

'I have to know where I'm going'

4 January 2021

‘When I'm putting together a novel, I leave all the doors and windows open so the characters can come in and just as easily leave. I don't take notes. Once I start writing things down, I feel like I'm nailing the story in place. When I rely on my faulty memory, the pieces are free to move.  Read more

28 December 2020 - What's new

December 2020
  • ‘No one reads your book as closely as a translator does, which is something you learn very quickly. I'm in such awe of them. They also read beneath it and around it. They make me consider things I thought I knew the meaning of because I use those words in everyday dialect and that's how the characters express themselves.
  Read more